Kathy's Legacy
Her smile is what we miss most.
In her final days, without enough breath to leave her hospital bed, Kathy was still texting Dave and others, asking about the move to Evergreen’s new location. She had been a core part of the plan to create this new space.
Kathy always thought of others first. In fact, Evergreen would not be here if Kathy hadn't encourage Dave to go for it 16 years ago. Insisting all the while that he’d be fine. From then on, Kathy could be overheard giving pep talks to Evergreen staff, students, welcoming patients, giving hugs and inspiring laughs.
Her hope lifted everyone.
Alongside Kathy's husband, Karl, we are honored to continue Kathy's passion of assuring that future generations of physical therapists are skilled at bringing others through tough times with the same kind of hope-filled encouragement. Today, we ARE fine, and to honor her legacy, Evergreen has established a memorial fund.
The Kathy Kumagai Shimamura Physical Therapy Movement Fellow Memorial Fund
Five years ago, Kathy co-created the Advanced Movement and Performance Fellowship at Azusa Pacific University with her long-time friend, Clare Frank. Together, they designed a program that focused on an excellence in evaluation and treatment of patients through a "movement lens". Evergreen has been fortunate enough to be a clinical training site for fellows in this program.
This specialization provides a foundation to launch into a deeper mentoring experience focused in the movement systems. Through this selective process, only 4 candidates are chosen and hosted at one of 3 sites. With the help of Clare, we are committed to keeping Kathy’s legacy strong at Evergreen.
Donations to this memorial fund are greatly appreciated and will assist fellows with tuition expenses, while they take time away from their full-time career. Although this donation will not be tax deductible, as we are not a 503c organization, 100% of the donations will go towards the tuition and training of the fellows hosted at Evergreen.
Kathy's Influence Lives in the People
